As nanoscale fabrication and research progress, it becomes increasingly necessary to probe the forces exerted by various kinds of surfaces (e.g. surfaces of solids and of biological samples) at the atomic level. One of the workhorses for measuring a force exerted by surface topography is the atomic force microscope (AFM). Drawbacks experienced with the current generation of AFMs include limited optical sensitivity to mechanical deflection and limited dynamic range. Accordingly, there is a need for new kinds of force sensors capable of more sensitive detection at the nano-scale and at the atomic scale.